FWA-UK’s Forum on “Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking- Domestic Workers Trafficked from the Middle East
FWA-UK organized a Forum on “Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking- Domestic Workers Trafficked from the Middle East” as spearheaded by our Chairman Eleanor Templeman, to raise awareness of the plight of domestic workers in the middle east and the protection afforded to them in the UK, at the Royal Garden Hotel Kensington, 15 November.
According to the Home Office guidance, Exploitation by way of Domestic servitude often involves people working in a household where they are:
• ill treated
• humiliated
• subjected to exhausting working hours
• forced to live and work under unbearable conditions
• forced to work for little or no pay.
In the UK, a mechanism is in place to provide protection to those who are potential victims of modern slavery and by granting them discretionary leave to remain providing they meet the requirements.
FWA-UK gives special thanks to the Guest Speakers who discussed in general and in detail different ways of exploitation including domestic servitude:
Marsha Humphreys and Janna Sherrin
• They Protect & Prevent Human Trafficking and Modern Day Slavery
• they are from the Serious Crime Directorate – Kent Police and Essex Police
• Marsha is the lead Intelligence Analyst for the Home Office covering the Southeast and Europe
• Janna is linguistics and cultural advisory service Officer
• make for a perfect combination of Officers focusing on preventative and protective Public Service.
• They believe that victim-centred approach will one day disrupt human traffickers and exploiters of the vulnerable up to such a point that it will become an unprofitable business model.
Alex Millbrook
• is a barrister who has been working as an immigration lawyer at Kalayaan since 2017.
• Prior to that, she lived in Hong Kong for 15 years where she worked at an NGO that gave free legal advice to migrant domestic workers there.
• She has wide experience in immigration and employment issues but has also practised in family, personal injury, criminal and agricultural law.
• Her first degree was in Modern History, which apparently started in AD 485, but continues to give her insight and perspective into the issues that affect her clients today.
• She is a qualified mediator.
• from Women@the Well
• is the Advocacy and Support Services Manager
The successful event was attended by different representatives of various Filipino groups including Filipino Domestic Workers Association, the Voice of Domestic Workers, The Philippine Jury Campaign, Batangas Association, Aguman Association, ENFID-UK and others. FWA-UK wishes to thank the Philippine Embassy represented by Consul Arlene Macaisa imparting the participants with useful information on available assistance to distressed Filipino domestic workers.
FWA-UK wishes to thank the Board Members and Leo Sumpongco who sponsored the event who made this event possible.
The FWA-UK is a non-profit, charitable organisation that was formally founded and established by Mrs. Nene Quimson (wife of the late Ambassador Quimson to the UK) in 1988.
The Association became a UK registered charity effective May 2012 with charity # 1147454. FWA-UK main focus and vision is to provide support to vulnerable women and education to indigent children through scholarship in the Philippines and the UK.